Grey Wethers Stone Circle Dartmoor Devon UK (© Simon Tranter Photography)

Belstone to Taw Marsh.

Having left home a bit later than planned on Friday afternoon, I hit the traffic heading for the Westcountry on the A303 which added 1.5hours to the journey. Reaching the carpark and shouldering packs we set off as the sun started setting and the temperature dropped. A short walk-in lead us to a great spot by the river Taw. The new shelter went up without too much faff (a few practice pitches at home helped!), and the stove went on for dinner. The night was clear and the recent new moon meant star watching was enjoyed by all, along with banter about possible nearby Jaguar kills

Taw Marsh to East River Dart.

As it turned out the only bother from any animals was on Saturday morning when the camp was invaded by Dartmoor Ponies. One of which had decided that, out of all the grass on Dartmoor the stuff under my new Trailstar was the tastiest!

Wild Camping at Taw Marsh (© Simon Tranter Photography)

We packed up and headed up hill on the well worn path towards a stone circle which sits on the shoulder between Little Hound Tor and Hound Tor. The views from here are good, but the weekends warm weather had unfortunately brought in the haze as well. We headed off to Hound Tor, followed by Wild Tor then across the small valley and up to Watern Tor.

White Moor Stone Circle (© Simon Tranter Photography)

Granite outcrop formations at Watern Tor (© Simon Tranter Photography)

The Thurlstone at Watern Tor (© Simon Tranter Photography)

Nigel showing his Jedi stream drinking skills using the iStraw.

After a short time photographing and filming we headed off along a boundary wall around Great, then Little Varracombe, and up to Sittaford Tor before dropping down to the Grey Wethers Stone Circle. I have been meaning to visit this stone circle of a few years, so it was nice to finally see it, I will return when the light is better one day!

Grey Wethers Stone Circle (© Simon Tranter Photography)

Grey Wethers Stone Circle (© Simon Tranter Photography)

From Grey Wethers we headed south to find a leat that contours around the 460m mark, but things quickly got ugly with rough knee-high tussocks, so we climbed steeply to a stile, over a wall and marched off across the mainly dry, crunchy bog towards Sandy Hole Pass. After dropping down and crossing the river to avoid Broad Marsh, we hopped back across and followed the East River Dart northwards to find a sheltered riverside camp.

MLD Cuben Fibre Trailstar on Dartmoor

The sun warmed and dried the tarp, but the temperature fell quickly at night, later causing a light ground frost. But the vast amount of food I had and the fluffy new quilt I just finished kept me toasty.

East River Dart to Belstone.

In the morning, after waiting for me to stop faffing while breaking camp, we squelched our way north across the Teign Head and up the very dry Whitehorse Hill.

Whitehorse Hill Peat Pass Dartmoor (© Simon Tranter Photography)

A few different video shots of us walking through the Peat Pass then a good track to Hangingstone Hill.  After admiring the 360-degree views we followed the stony tracks to the ford over the River Taw and up to Oke Tor which was busy with more scouts and day walkers enjoying the sunshine. The last climb up Higher Tor I was really feeling the lack of fitness from not doing much walking or running recently. The views were good, but a lot more hazy than last time I was up here. Finally after crossing the Irishman’s Wall we dropped back down to Belstone to begin the drive home. On the drive home I stopped off at the wonderful Otter Valley Dairy for some Banofee ice cream while watching the cows that supplied the milk that morning graze the fields.

Thanks to Nigel and Graham for the banter and good humor all weekend. I will post a link to Nigel’s video when it’s finished.

Update:

Below is the video put together by Nigel, he runs navigation courses in the New Forest so go and take a looksie!

Dartmoor March 2012

Glyntawe to Sinc Giedd.

Setting off after lunch it took us 3 hours to get to Glyntawe, and after paying £3/day parking we left the car in the Dan-yr-Ogof campsite. Packs shouldered we headed behind the campsite, following the zig-zagging path up the steep slope and past a disused quarry.

View up the valley towards Fan Gyhirych from Glyntawe in Powys Wales (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

We were soon up on the moor and following the well worn and surprisingly dry path through an area littered with shake holes.

After a couple of miles we found the strange valley of the upper Afon Giedd where the river flows until it hits an outcrop of limestone and disappears into it’s own bed at Sinc Giedd or Swallow Hole. The weather forecast was dry and there was no risk of the narrow valley flooding, so we found a good pitch in the bottom on a flat piece of ground next to the river.

Wild camping near to Sinc Giedd or the Swallow Hole in Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Overnight the sky cleared and I spend some time star gazing up at the moonless sky while lying under my tarp.

Sinc Giedd to Llyn y Fan Fawr.

The next morning after breaking camp we explored the valley until it’s abrupt end when the river disappears into the ground, apparently to re-appear down in the Dan-yr-Ogof caves.

Sinc Giedd where the Afon Giedd drops underground and into a cave system (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Sinc Giedd where the Afon Giedd drops underground and into a cave system (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

We headed west picking our way over a couple of shallow and boggy valleys. Then contouring and dropping down to cross the Afon Twrch, which forms the boundary between the counties of Powys and Carmarthenshire.

Looking down the Afon Twrch valley in the Black Mountain area of Brecon Beacons (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Sphagnum moss in Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Next we climbed the slopes of Garreg Las, zig-zagging the way up through areas of wet bog and bouldery scree. Stopping to drink in the view over the land we had just crossed it seemed a fitting time for some lunch.

View from Esgair Hir in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Re-fuelled we climbed to the top of the hill and to the top of one of two giant stone cairns. The views west and south opened up as far as the Gower and beyond to Pembrokeshire.

View west from Twyn-Swnd towards Moel Gornach in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

We dropped down the northern shoulder and then crossed the broad valley, climbing the long steep western slopes of Bannau Sir Gaer. Eventually we reached the spectacular cliffs overlooking Llyn y Fan Fach.We continued along the ridge following the Beacons Way and passing the first people since leaving Glyntawe. The views just keep getting better here as Picws Du is climbed.

Llyn y Fan Fach in the Black Mountain area of Brecon Beacons (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Llyn y Fan Fach in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

We dropped down into the bwlch and climbed up to Fan Foel where the view back along the ridge is fantastic. Shortly after crossing the border back into Powys county, the view east opens up right the way across to the Central Beacons and Pen y Fan.

View East from Fan-foel towards Peny Fan and the Central Beacons (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

We continued up and on to the highest point in the Black Mountain Fan Brycheiniog, where Nigel’s video camera battery died. Figuring the best pitch would be down by Llyn y Fan Fawr we dropped steeply down to it’s shores via Bwlch Giedd. I found a brilliant pitch on a small finger of land jutting out into the lake before cooking up a big meal to replenish the energy stores.

Wild camping on the shoes of Llyn y Fan Fawr in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Wild camping on the shoes of Llyn y Fan Fawr in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Llyn y Fan Fawr to Glyntawe.

Over night the sky cleared again and I hoped for a good sunrise. This time I was lucky and the sun rose behind Pen y Fan as I looked out under the tarp.

Sunrise over Pen y Fan from a wild camp in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

I got up in the cold wind and ran around taking photographs before breakfast.

Sunrise over Peny Fan and the Central Beacons from the shores of Llyn y Fan Fawr (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Fan Brycheiniog rises from the western edge of Llyn y Fan Fawr

Wild camping on the shoes of Llyn y Fan Fawr in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Rocks on the shore of Llyn y Fan Fawr in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

After breaking camp we headed off down the Beacons Way which runs beneith the Fan Hir ridge and past a very pretty waterfall.

The Beacons Way footpath runs along the bottom of the Fan Hir ridge (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

Waterfall on the Beacons Way below the Fan Hir ridge in the Black Mountain (Simon Tranter simontranter.com)

The sun was warming us up nicely. After eventually picking our way down the hill, we tramped the half-mile back along the road to the car, happy and tired. You can see the photos in the Wales Gallery over on the main site.

Nigel put together a video of the trip please go and take a look.

***geek alert*** If you are interested in what I carried for the trip take a look at my gear list on Geargrams.com a really useful little site which breaks down the weights and even gives you a pie-chart!

MYOG?!

MYOG stands for ‘Make your own Gear’ and usually applies to outdoor equipment that has been modified of constructed to suit a persons specific needs. I have been making the odd windsheild, meths burner and pouch cosy for backpacking for a while and I have recently decided (thanks to inspiration from people on Twitter) to step it up a notch and learn to sew. So more terrible MYOG projects may grace these pages in the months to come!

Cuben Fibre bonded drybag.

I have wanted a larger and lighter drybag to put my sleeping bag in for a while, so when some Cuben Fibre came up on eBay and I remembered some plans for a drybag I had seen, I grabbed a metre of it. I have been asked by a few people on Twitter to write a blog showing how it’s made.

I have followed the product developments over on Suluk 46 for a while and in the R&D section you can find my main inspiration for my drybag. Along with this there is a Youtube video of him making a bonded Cuben stuff sack which really helped. If you’re interested in making this I recommend watching it (I pretty much copy it!).

Right, to  make this you will need:

• Cuben Fibre, (or Spinnaker / Silnylon will probably work)
• Bonding Tape, I used Venture 1163 but there are special Cuben tapes or 3M make one that works
• Buckle
• Cutting Mat
• Stanley Knife – with new sharp blade, I also used a old craft knife for cutting tape to stop getting the new blade sticky
• Marker
• Tape Measure or ruler
• A straight edge (I used a piece of wood).

First you need to work out what size drybag you want to make, I advise you to make some prototypes to work it out. I made 3 out of cheap plastic I had in the garage. I ended up wanting a quite big drybag so I didn’t squash my sleeping bag too much.

Next cut out your Cuben Fibre leaving an extra 25mm in the width and 40mm in length to allow for the joins

Tape down the side edge all the way to the end.

I have 25mm wide tape, which I’m happy with to add strength to the seams. But I wanted a 12.5mm top hem, so cut the tape in half along. This is easiest to do on the roll.

Starting at the edge of the side tape, tape along the top edge to the other side.

Next fold the bag in half so the sides are together and the tape is facing up, weight it down, remove the tape and fold up the underneith piece sticking it down. You should have a Cuben tube.

Fold back the hem so the tape is on the inside, remove the tape and stick down the hem as you go working your way around until the top is stuck down.

Now flatten the drybag with the seam running down the middle, carefully cut 25mm up each side at the bottom. Turn the drybag over, fold up the flap and cut off the front flap. Be careful not the cut the rear flap aswell!

Turn the drybag back over and tape above the flap you just cut off, remove the backing and fold up the flap sticking it down. You should now have a Cuben envelope!

Next I stuck some tape on the cut off strip of Cuben and cut a couple of 50mm strips and stuck them around the corners. Probably overkill, but it did improve waterproofness in the prototypes.

I stuck tape down and cut a strip 400x25mm and stuck it together folded in three so that it would fit the buckle. Thread the ends through each part of the buckle and stick down the ends.

You should now have a nice bracelett, if that’s what you want then stop here. But I needed it, so I stuck it to the top hem with a couple of other patches over the top as ‘belts and braces’.

That’s it! You now have a Cuben Fibre drybag! Perfect for soft goods, just dont put anything sharp in there or it will puncture. The satisfaction of making something yourself is great, try it and get the MYOG bug.

Here are some more photies of the finished thing. My finished drybag is 325x510mm and weighs 21grams, not too bad. It is plenty big enough for my sleeping bag and bed clothes, or possibly a cold weather sleeping bag. Sorry if you found this a bit long I will try and be more consise in future.

North Hessary Tor to Great Mis Tor.

A nice easy start to the walk up the well worn track towards the TV station mast revealed a view back over Princetown, and a cracking view down to Plymouth and the Tamar estuary. I grabbed my camera to capture the scene, only to realise that in my hurry I had forgotten to charge the batteries on the camera! After some swearing I decided to run back to the car rather than lug the dead weight around. “Oh well, I will just have to enjoy the experience and snap a couple of shots on the iPhone” – what an idiot!

I rewarded myself with a quick break and snack once I had got back up North Hessary Tor. I can see why they use this hill for a TV mast, the views are stunning. We continued down to Rundlestone and followed the track up towards Great Mis Tor. A larger outcrop which has been called one of the grandest hills in Devon, it lies on the edge of the Merrivale Range. A shame really that it seemed to have become a campsite, littered with tents and youngsters, which I can only guess as part of DofE or Ten Tors training. Never mind, I took a bearing for Cocks Hill and headed out over Mistor Marsh. Found a pitch with a view over the River Walkham and watched the setting sun as the water boiled for the home-made dehydrated Chilli.

Camping in the Wilds of Dartmoor

Cocks Hill, Broad Hole and Beardown Tors.

In the morning the tarptent had a lot less condensation than the last trip, I think the light breeze helped to keep it ventilated. I gorged on home-made fruit cake given to me the day before, packed up and set off down to cross the River Walkham. Navigating over Cocks Hill to meet the footpath at White Barrow and then crossing the valley to the East and up on to Conies Down where we met some Dartmoor ponies enjoying the sunshine.

Conies Down looking back to North Hessary and Great Mis Tors, Dartmoor

A little further on and we crossed the next valley, Broad Hole, where two tributaries flow into the Cowsic River. By now the sun was beating down and the cool fresh water provided some nice refreshment.

Broad Hole, Dartmoor

After crossing the valley we entered the boundary wall and followed the path around the flanks of Lydford Tor. Then picked a way across some rough ground and up Beardown Tors with more grand views where we stopped for an early lunch. The plan was to then head around the head of the valley and down through Wistman’s Wood, but due to heat and lack of fitness we decided to take the path down through Beardown Farm and back to Two Bridges. All that was left was the long plod back along the B3212 to Princetown, which seemed to take forever in the early afternoon sun. A quick call in to visit some friends in Exmouth on the way home rounded off the weekend nicely.

The pictures above were all taken on my iPhone, but please don’t let that put you off, have a look at the Devon Gallery over on the main site.

Now I don’t want this to turn into a backpacking gear blog, I have been planning to do a short piece on the Lunar Duo as I found it difficult to get much information about it before I bought it, so I will do a separate post with more information about it.

Belstone to Yes Tor and High Willhays.

After leaving late, and getting caught in the usual traffic on the A303 around Stonehenge, we arrived at the charming village of Belstone on the edge of Dartmoor around 4pm. Out of the village on the Tarka Trail to the west and through a gate lead us out onto Belstone Common and a view of the main objective for the day, Yes Tor and High Willhays.

The sun was beating down and it was around 25c. We followed the easy gravel tracks down to Cullever Steps and the East Oakmount River’s water was tempting. Following the tracks we climbed the sholder of Rowtor and into Okehampton MOD Range. The reward was the view towards Oke Tor and Steeperton Tor to the southeast.

Oke Tor and Steeperton Tor Dartmoor

Next was the sholder of West Mill Tor with its jagged summit passing to our north the final climb up to Yes Tor came reasonably easily and views back to where we had come were excellent, if a little hazy.

Yes Tor 619m (2031ft) is the second highest peak in Dartmoor

The view from Yes Tor to West Mill Tor Dartmoor

To the south lies High Willhays, the highest point on Dartmoor, an easy half mile walk along the wide ridge. The views to the south and into the remotest areas of Dartmoor are stunning,. But the outcrop itself is far less impressive than Yes Tor, and doesn’t even feel as high when you are there.

High Willhays 621 m (2,037 ft) the highest point in Dartmoor

We left the range tracks and headed for Dinger Tor and found a pitch on the other side. The sun went down and painted the sky with a soft pink. The temperature dropped and dew started forming on the flysheet.

SMD Lunar Duo tarptent, as the sun sets over Dinger Tor, Dartmoor.

Oke Tor and Belstone Common.

In the morning I tried to dry the tent as much as possible before giving up and stuffing it back in my pack. We headed off on pathless terrain to the southeast and forded Brim Brook relatively easily. Luckily the recent dry weather had meant the boggy ground Dartmoor is famous for was so far dry, I hoped it would stay like this as we headed up the un-named mound. We arrived at the very rounded summit grid ref 593873 and took a bearing for where the army tracks meet on Okement Hill. The ground was dry, but deep grass and tussocks still made it tough work in the rising temperatures. A rest on Okement Hill and removal of crawling ticks was a relief. Following the track east the views opened up to the north again with Steeperton Tor, Oke Tor and Cosdon Hill.

Continuing along the now tarmac section to the northeast and then the path north along the broad ridge we reached Oke Tor. Not as high as many of the surrounding hills it has an impressive granite Tor, it made a good stop for an early lunch and a bit of light scrambling/bouldering fun.

Oke Tor on the edge of Okehampton Range Dartmoor

Carrying on along the broad ridge and climbing up to Higher Tor was hot work. I took more pictures at Irishman’s Wall where a grand view back to yesterdays hills provided the background. After clambering over Belstone Tor we headed down the hill back towards the Tarka Trail and Belstone village. Feeling pretty tired from the heat and not doing any long walks recently, we got back to the car and headed straight to Okehampton services to cool down with an ice lolly.

To see some other pictures taken on the trip take a look at the Devon Gallery on my website.